Braised pork rice bowl at Panda Dim Sum, a Yeonnam-dong Chinese spot

Where is Panda Dim Sum? 8 minutes from Hongik University Station Exit 3

I had a memorable Peking duck in China once, and I'd been craving a proper one again for a while. While searching for Hongdae dim sum or good Chinese restaurants near Hongdae, I came across Panda Dim Sum. It's about an 8-minute walk from Exit 3 of Hongik University Station, so it was easy to find. It's a convenient spot to reach by public transit whenever plans come up in Hongdae, so meeting friends here felt effortless.

Inside Panda Dim Sum: the room and kiosk ordering at each table

Walking in, the space felt clean and well put together overall. It wasn't the overly formal type of Chinese restaurant — more relaxed but tidy, which made it feel fine for a drink or two as well as family dinners, friend gatherings, or even a group celebrating an upcoming wedding. I especially liked that every table had its own kiosk, so I could browse the menu at my own pace and order comfortably. No waiting around for staff — I could order right from the table, which was convenient throughout the meal.

What's on the Panda Dim Sum menu

Panda Dim Sum menu

The menu at Panda Dim Sum included braised pork (dongpo-yuk) rice bowl, black pepper beef rice bowl, mala mapo tofu rice bowl, chicken dandan noodles, Chinese tonkotsu noodles, mala mixed noodles, flying fish roe shumai, xiaolongbao (soup dumplings), corn shumai, truffle shumai, chaoshou (Sichuan wontons), handmade truffle spring rolls, crispy yurinji (fried chicken), yuzu mayo shrimp, Peking duck, cold silken tofu salad and berry sweet and sour pork. There was also a range of drinks to go with the food — soju, beer, whiskey highballs, gaoliang highballs and gaoliang liquor.

Half Peking duck with pancakes, cucumber, scallion and sugar

The dish I was most looking forward to was, of course, the Peking duck. Ordering the half portion brought the duck along with pancakes, cucumber, scallion and sugar. The real charm of Peking duck has to be the crispy skin. I tried the skin on its own first — the outside was truly crispy, while inside there was that distinct savory duck flavor.

Dipping it lightly in sugar, the salty, savory crunch of the skin combined with the sweetness surprisingly well. At first, dipping duck skin in sugar seemed a bit odd, but after trying it, I understood exactly why people eat it this way. The skin alone stayed satisfyingly crisp, and the duck meat itself was far more tender than I expected. You might assume duck could be a little dry, but in reality the meat was moist and tender, with a rich, distinct savoriness.

I also tried wrapping a piece of duck with cucumber and scallion inside a pancake and rolling it up. The chewy, soft texture of the pancake, the crisp coolness of the cucumber, the sharp bite of the scallion, and the savory duck all came together really well. The flavor became so much fuller than eating the duck on its own. In one bite, the crispy duck skin, tender meat, crunchy vegetables and chewy pancake all blended together, and the more I chewed, the more savory and clean the flavor became. The scallion and cucumber cut through any richness from the duck, so I kept reaching for more. It had been a while since I'd had Peking duck, and it tasted just as good as I'd hoped — the most satisfying dish of the day for me.

What does Panda Dim Sum's truffle shumai taste like?

Next up was the truffle shumai. With truffle piled on top, a rich, fragrant aroma drifted up as soon as it arrived. I usually think of shumai as a clean, savory dish, but adding truffle on top gave it a noticeably more upscale, distinctive feel.

Biting in, the chewy yet moist wrapper and the savory, clean flavor of the filling came through first, followed by the deep, fragrant truffle flavor. The truffle wasn't so strong that it overwhelmed everything else — instead it made the savory shumai flavor feel even richer. The truffle aroma spread subtly with each bite, giving it a different charm from regular shumai. It was especially good eaten warm, when the truffle aroma came through even more. With the moist, soft shumai and the rich, fragrant truffle, the aroma lingered in my mouth long after each bite. Ordering it alongside the Peking duck let me alternate between the crispy, savory duck and the soft, fragrant shumai — a great combination.

Braised pork rice bowl: sweet soy sauce soaking into the rice

The last dish I ordered was the braised pork (dongpo-yuk) rice bowl. Dongpo-yuk is thick-cut pork braised until tender, and it looked delicious just sitting there. With the pork piled on top of the rice, it was easy to eat the meat and rice together.

The lean meat was soft and moist, while the fatty part melted away tenderly — a texture that really stood out. It broke apart easily with just a light press of the chopsticks, with no toughness at all. The rich, sweet soy-based flavor typical of dongpo-yuk paired especially well with the rice. The meat itself was seasoned just right, so it was delicious on its own, but eating it with the rice let the salty-sweet sauce soak in naturally, making it even better.

Who is Panda Dim Sum best for: dates, friends or family dinners?

Overall, every dish at Panda Dim Sum had a clear personality, making it great for ordering several things to share. I especially liked that instead of the usual Chinese food you commonly find around Hongdae, you can enjoy something a bit more special, like Peking duck and truffle shumai. It's in a walkable spot from Hongik University Station and the restaurant is clean, so it worked well for chatting with friends over good food, and it also seemed like a solid choice for a family dinner, a date, or a gathering for an upcoming wedding. It brought back memories of the Peking duck I had in China a while back, and being able to try a variety of Chinese dishes in one sitting made this a satisfying visit to Panda Dim Sum.

• Address: 22 Donggyo-ro 38an-gil, 2nd floor, Mapo-gu, Seoul, South Korea
• Hours: 12:00 PM - 9:00 PM
• Break time: 4:00 PM - 5:00 PM